DECACS, Inc. and all its Initiatives

Archive for the ‘Uber’ Category

Jolted back to reality by the presence of this reporter having been dozing off for what appeared the whole day, Lawal Azeez sprang to his feet to make enquiries about this reporter’s intended destination. Mr. Azeez was later joined by his colleagues, a group of old and middle-aged men. With desperation written boldly on their faces, they all scrambled amongst themselves to gain the attention of this reporter, whom they had erroneously identified as a potential passenger..

But the reporter’s response, detailing his mission at the park, would later dash their hope, and they all wobbled back to their respective positions, awaiting the arrival of another passenger.

Mr. Azeez, 49, and his colleagues are taxi operators. But like others at the taxi park located around the Central Business District, CBD, Ikeja, their business has been disrupted by the activities of Uber operators.

Uber is an internet-enabled, relatively stress-free transportation system that allows passengers order for cabs wherever they are at fairly cheaper cost. The system, which started around 2014, has been widely accepted by internet-savvy Nigerians who prefer it for comfort and safety purposes.

“Ah, Uber people have spoilt business for us; I must confess,” said a disgruntled Mr. Azeez, when probed by PREMIUM TIMES.

“To be frank, I didn’t make a kobo yesterday. These days, in a whole week, you may not get N5,000… which wasn’t the situation before now,” he lamented.

When asked to give a rough estimate of how much he used to make daily before the alleged ‘disruption’ by Uber drivers, the Ogun State-born taxi driver said he couldn’t give an exact estimate.

“But I know we make something in the region of ten-thousand plus daily on the average,” he said.

“But as I speak to you, if you make N5,000, you must thank your stars. You, too, must have noticed it from the atmosphere here… imagine how everywhere appears deserted.”

Mr. Azeez’s position was corroborated by another Taxi operator at the Ikeja CBD, Hassan Murphy.

Mr. Murphy, 43, explained that the activities of Uber drivers have been a source of sorrow for them as they no longer get patronage like they did in the past.

“If you notice, there are many taxis on ground here and their owners aren’t here. They’ve all gone home out of anger,” he said.

“Many of them have been here for hours without seeing any passenger; they had to go.”

Mr. Murphy, who claimed to have built a house from his taxi transport business, also lamented that the development has taken a toll on his responsibilities among family members and at the home front.

“These days, people I used to give N20,000 in the past would count themselves lucky if I give them N3,000.

“It has become so bad here in this park that in a whole week, it may not get to your turn to pick up passengers,” he said.

“That’s apart from the fact that we pay dues too. They tax us N200 daily and N1,000 weekly, despite the poor patronage.”

“RECKLESS, UNSUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MODEL”

According to Messrs. Azeez and Murphy, although the business model adopted by Uber operators affects their business as taxi drivers, it is “reckless and unsustainable” even for the Uber operators.

Explaining further, they noted that what Uber drivers charge their passengers as transport fare is “ridiculous”.

“POD too came and folded up. But the ‘Yellow and Black’ taxi survived all of them. It will survive Uber too.”

Uber drivers, however, disagree with the assessment by the taxi operators.

Charles Daniels, a Uber driver, dismissed the account of the taxi drivers, saying they were pained by the popularity and acceptability of the Uber system.

“I won’t say Uber is really profitable, especially now, but it still provides food for some of us,” he said.

Another Uber operator who declined to have his name in print, said in response to PREMIUM TIMES enquiry on how much they make: “You know, we charge very reasonable amount… so we don’t make huge figures like that… but it is something good… say thirty-something thousand naira or even more weekly.

“That’s not too bad, I guess… and it still depends on days of the week and how energetic you are,” he added.

PASSENGERS REACT

Habeeb Adewale, 27, a regular user of Uber, who spoke with PREMIUM TIMES, explained that he prefers the system because of the ease it affords him to order for a cab wherever he is.

“Wherever you are, Uber will locate you without stress,” said Mr. Adewale, a banker who lives and works in Lagos.

Femi Owolabi, another Lagos-based passenger, said the system is cheaper and safer, especially for night crawlers.

“Uber, preferably (because of) the comfort, and the timely service,” he told PREMIUM TIMES in an interview when asked about his preference.

For James Abiola, an IT expert, the Uber system is preferable because of its cheaper cost and comfort.

“Sometimes, Uber allows you comfortably ride an exotic car with less than a thousand naira,” he said, amid laughter.

Uber Founder Travis Kalanick Resigns as C.E.O.

Travis Kalanick stepped down Tuesday as chief executive of Uber, the ride-hailing service that he helped found in 2009 and that he built into a transportation colossus, after a shareholder revolt made it untenable for him to stay on at the company.

Mr. Kalanick’s exit came under pressure after hours of drama involving Uber’s investors, according to two people with knowledge of the situation, who asked to remain anonymous because the details are confidential.

Earlier on Tuesday, five of Uber’s major investors demanded that the chief executive resign immediately. The investors included one of Uber’s biggest shareholders, the venture capital firm Benchmark, which has one of its partners, Bill Gurley, on Uber’s board. The investors made their demand for Mr. Kalanick to step down in a letter delivered to the chief executive while he was in Chicago, said the people with knowledge of the situation.

In the letter, titled “Moving Uber Forward” and obtained by The New York Times, the investors wrote to Mr. Kalanick that he must immediately leave and that the company needed a change in leadership. Mr. Kalanick, 40, consulted with at least one Uber board member and after long discussions with some of the investors, he agreed to step down. He will remain on Uber’s board of directors.

“I love Uber more than anything in the world and at this difficult moment in my personal life I have accepted the investors request to step aside so that Uber can go back to building rather than be distracted with another fight,” Mr. Kalanick said in a statement.

Uber’s board said in a statement that Mr. Kalanick had “always put Uber first” and that his stepping down as chief executive would give the company “room to fully embrace this new chapter in Uber’s history.” An Uber spokesman declined to comment further.

The move caps months of questions over the leadership of Uber, which has become a prime example of Silicon Valley start-up culture gone awry. The company has been exposed this year as having a workplace culture that is rife with sexual harassment and discrimination, and has pushed the envelope in dealing with law enforcement and even partners. That tone was set by Mr. Kalanick, who has aggressively turned the company into the world’s dominant ride-hailing service and upended the transportation industry around the globe.

Mr. Kalanick’s troubles began earlier this year after a former Uber engineer detailed what she said was sexual harassment at the company, opening the floodgates for more complaints and spurring internal investigations. In addition, Uber has been dealing with an intellectual property lawsuit from Waymo, the self-driving car business that operates under Google’s parent company, and a federal inquiry into a software tool that Uber used to sidestep some law enforcement.